Michael Laudrup is new Swansea boss

Swansea City have appointed Michael Laudrup as their new manager, ending the search for a replacement for Brendan Rodgers, who left the Liberty Stadium for Liverpool in May.

Laudrup, 48, had been strongly linked with the vacancy in recent days and reportedly impressed the Swansea board in a series of meetings. He has been rewarded with a two-year contract with the Welsh club.

"Swansea City are pleased to confirm the appointment of Michael Laudrup as the club's new manager," a Swansea statement said. "Contracts were completed at noon on a two-year deal."

Laudrup has managed at Brondby, Getafe, Spartak Moscow and Real Mallorca, and had spoken of his desire to take up the challenge of bossing a Premier League club.

He told the Swansea website: "I've spoken to the chairman, and I'm very pleased to sign for Swansea City.

"It's going to be a new experience for me and I'm really looking forward to it. Everyone knows the style of football Swansea play, and it suits my way of thinking."

The Swansea chairman, Huw Jenkins, said he was delighted to welcome Laudrup and believed the new manager would be a perfect fit for the club.

"Michael has a clear picture and understanding of what we require at Swansea City to build on all the good work and strides we have made over the last few years as a football club," Jenkins said. "There is no doubt about his standing as one of the game's greatest footballers, but we also see the qualities he has as a manager.

"We see Michael as someone who is fully committed and educated in all aspects of the way we want to take the club forward.

"Everyone I've spoken to about Michael during the appointment process can't speak highly enough about him, not just as a football man, but as a person. I'm confident that Michael will prove a fantastic acquisition."

Swansea finished in 11th place in their first season in the top flight after Rodgers had guided them to promotion in a thrilling play-off final against Reading at Wembley.

Ex-Swans manager Jan Molby believes his Danish compatriot Laudrup is the perfect fit at the Liberty Stadium, with a managerial philosophy that suits the club's widely-praised passing style.

"He was strongly influenced by Johan Cruyff when he was at Barcelona in the late 1980s and early 1990s,'' Molby told BBC Sport Wales.

"That's how he wants to play his football, that's how Swansea played last year under Brendan Rodgers, so I think it's a marriage made in heaven."

But Swansea's hopes of completing the signing of Icelandic midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson, who starred for them on loan last season and scored seven goals in 17 games, appear to be fading.

The Swans had agreed a £6.8 million fee with Hoffenheim and settled personal terms with the player, but the departure of Rodgers led Sigurdsson to admit he had reservations about making a permanent move.